North\u00a0Korea\u00a0was\u00a0behind an audacious plot to kill the estranged half-brother of dictator Kim Jong-un, the Malaysian prosecution in the trial over his murder alleged on Monday. Kim Jong-nam, 45, was publicly assassinated at Kuala Lumpur airport on February 13 by two young Asian women…<\/b>
\nNorth\u00a0Korea\u00a0was\u00a0behind an audacious plot to kill the estranged half-brother of dictator Kim Jong-un, the Malaysian prosecution in the trial over his murder alleged on Monday.
Kim Jong-nam, 45, was publicly assassinated at Kuala Lumpur airport on February 13 by two young Asian women who smeared his face with VX, a chemical weapon the United Nations has described as a weapon of mass destruction.
They have been charged with murder, along with four other unnamed people, who remain at large.
The Malaysian police have named four North\u00a0Koreans\u00a0as suspects after they left Kuala Lumpur for Pyongyang on the day of the killing.
Only the two female suspects, Indonesian Siti Aisyah, 25, and Doan Thi Huong, 28, from Vietnam, appeared on Monday at the opening day of the trial at the Shah Alam High Court on the outskirts of the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, both wearing flak jackets.
They have pleaded not guilty to the boldest political assassination in recent times, claiming they believed they were taking part in a TV prank show.
Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of Kim Jong-un, in pictures
They face the death penalty if convicted.
Opening the prosecution, Muhamad Iskander Ahmad rejected their version of events, claiming their actions showed their \u201cintention to kill\u201d and that they had practised for the hit beforehand.
However, prosecutors have also accused the North\u00a0Koreans\u00a0of helping the women carry out several practice runs in Kuala Lumpur shopping malls before they attacked Kim as he checked in for a morning flight to Macau.
\u201cThe prank practice carried out by the first and second accused with the supervision of the four who are still at large was preparation to see through their common intention to kill the victim,\u201d the prosecution said in its charge sheet.
Kim Jong-un | A history of executions – family, allies and rivals
The women\u2019s defence lawyers demanded in court that the prosecution immediately name the four other suspects so that they could prepare their case, but Judge Azmi Ariffin dismissed their request.
Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, one of the lawyers representing Ms Huong, has said that the absence of the four North\u00a0Korean\u00a0suspects left a \u201cbig gap\u201d in the prosecution\u2019s case.
Following the opening proceedings, he told The Telegraph the defence intended into blame North\u00a0Korea\u00a0during the course of the trial when \u201cthe appropriate witness takes the stand.\u201d
South\u00a0Korea\u00a0and the US have accused the North of murdering Kim, who had criticised the regime after falling out of favour with his father Kim Jong-il before his exile in Macau.
It is believed his half-brother Kim Jong-un saw him as a potential threat to his rule.
A Malaysian police officer who escorted Kim to the airport clinic was one of the first two witnesses to address the court on Monday.
Mohamad Zulkarnian, 31, gave a dramatic account of his final, agonising moments, his eyes red and surrounded by liquid, as he pleaded with the officer to \u201cwalk slow, my eyes are blurred.\u201d
Mr Zulkarnian waited outside the clinic as medical staff fought to save Kim\u2019s life after he collapsed as the toxic VX nerve agent rapidly shut down his central nervous system.
\u201cI noticed the man slumped on a chair and the medical staff were giving emergency treatment,\u201d he told the court.
Juliana Idris, an airport information officer, and the first person Kim approached for help, was the second witness out of 30-40 expected to be called by the prosecution over the next few months.
She testified that he told her two women had attacked him from behind. \u201cHis hands were shaking a bit, I don\u2019t know why,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n